GGI Conference Review
GGI German Speaking Chapter & GGI Leadership Forum, Eisenberg, Austria, 26-30 June 2024
Back to back events, with two different languages, might be intimidating for some but this is what we love. Here at GGI, we bring people together while making sure there are imaginative sessions, lots of food, plenty of wine, buckets of fun … then we just sit back and watch the chemistry happen. This event was certainly funner than a month of Sundays!
“… funner than a month of Sundays!”
On the first day, Wednesday 26 June, GGI's German-speakers assembled together, coming in from Austria, Germany, Switzerland… It's been a while since the last German-Speaking Chapter in Das Eisenberg, five years to be precise, but it meant that there was a familiarity not just with each other but also with being back in Claudio's “home”. The weather obliged and the group were able to enjoy a drinks in the evening sun before settling in for the Welcome Dinner in the hotel.
Thursday morning started bright and early, with a view on the economic outlook for the future with Prof Dr Teodoro Cocca.
After the break, speaker Lorenz Huber and the String Quartett of the Leadership Orchestra made sure that everyone got up and moving as they explored the topic of dissonance. The key message was that the top ensembles are not afraid of conflict and they figure out ways of stabilising the group dynamics in order to perform.
A quick transfer to a beautiful castle for lunch and then some fine cheese-tasting, while enjoying the beautiful Styrian countryside during the course of the afternoon.
When the group returned to the hotel, there were many happy reunions with more GGI members, this time the English-speakers who had joined for the dinner which marked the end of the GGI German-Speaking Chapter but the beginning of the GGI Leadership Forum.
At most of our meetings, the “first day” starts with a plenary session, with interesting keynotes. BUT NOT our Leadership Forum this year. Immediately after breakfast, the group got onto a bus to go to AbenteuerWelten for a most fun day out. Everyone got split into teams, and the competitions began. Wow, there are some very competitive spirits in GGI. (Raoul, maybe we're talking about you.) There are also some very naturally talented people when it comes to wellie boot throwing (maybe a toss up between Darlene and Jacob), tractor driving (Ady, where exactly did you learn that skill), cow-milking (what? Michael?!) and log-sawing (Claudia and Werner, not bad, not bad). In the end, there were some very slim margins between the teams. We can rest assured that the GGI auditors stepped in to make sure that all the calculations were accurately made.
The last meeting day, Saturday 29 June, saw us back in the meeting room with Lorenz Huber, and this time with the Brass Ensemble quinTTTonic, looking at “The Balanced Way of Leadership”. It was pure joy to see Karl Friedrich conducting, and we all came away from the session with the feeling that we had learnt so much while having the best fun.
Das Eisenberg is not the easiest of locations to get to, but once you've been, you realise it's just what you needed.